Another Bond
by TitanMountain
Summary: Teen Titans short story about how Raven and Robin share a bond with their experiences with Slade.


**Another Bond  
(a short Teen Titans story)  
*pairing - Rob/Rae**

**--**

"Has anyone seen Robin?"

Raven looked around the Main Room with curiously concerned, violet eyes. Her long, dark cloak whispered with the wind quietly behind her, rising and falling with her every movement.

The simple question was one many Titans had asked before Raven had, for their leader had seemingly disappeared after their mission the previous night…

Robin had taken his team down to the old junk yard on Carnage Street, for he had gotten an alert call to investigate. But before leaving, Robin had made sure to check what the problem was with the troubled caller. He soon found out with another second or two of research – Slade.

The team had gone down to search the place out. Sure enough, greeting them on arrival had been hundreds of Slade minions. While battling, Robin had vanished from sight. Hours had passed before the battle had been won, and still there had been no sign of him. After searching for another hour or so with no communication, they all wondered if he had returned to the Tower.

Thinking that was what he had done, all the Titans had headed back… all but Raven. She had felt something was way off, and that she had find him.

The rest of the Titans had said they'd check the Tower and wait for him there, while Raven had continued to search.

It wasn't until 1 in the morning that she actually found him. She had found him lying on the ground behind an old abandoned schoolhouse. His clothes were torn, he was completely covered in cuts and bruises, and he wasn't moving.

She had flown down to him and had quickly began healing him. Fear had struck her forcefully in her stomach; her heart had pounded fiercely in her chest. She could guess what had happened…but wouldn't dare.

She whispered his name softly, her breath catching in her throat as she blinked through unshed tears. "Richard…" She choked, praying silently that he would awaken.

And to her surprise, he responded to his name, and his (now unmasked) eyes barely opened as he gazed weakly up at her. He tried to speak, but it was as if his voice had been already worn out…

"Shh…" Raven whispered, gently healing his face as she desperately fought for control over herself.

"I…i-it was just…" Robin coughed, shutting his eyes tightly with a swallow before slowing opening them again. "A fight…"

Hardly believing him but having nothing else to hold onto at the moment, Raven had nodded and pursed her lips together. After having taken a little more time to finish healing what she had been able to, she then had encased her leader in an aura of black energy and had taken him back to the Tower.

And that basically had been the end of it. Once back to the Tower, she had placed him in the hospital room and had taken care of him from there, but nothing else was known, and nothing else was suspected.

But suddenly, he was gone from the hospital room and was nowhere to be found.

"Shit." Raven cursed under her breath as she walked over to one of the giant windows. Swiftly she raised her legs up and hovered silently as she crossed them.

"Richard…" She whispered mentally as she shut her eyes and positioned fingers for meditation.

Ten minutes of hush passed until she actually found the dark-haired leader. As far as she could see, he was in the moonlit city, on the roof of the Wayne building.

In a second, Raven was out the window and flying to that very location.

She sped to the building, landing on the roof in about seven minutes.

"Robin?" She called, looking around. "Richard? Are you up here?"

No response.

Sensing his presence, Raven glanced around until her eyes met their target. There he was. Sitting alone on the other side of the roof.

"There you are…" The Azarathian sighed in relief, gently hovering over to where Robin was gazing down over dangling legs at the city. "Richard?" She asked quietly, his depressed emotions slowly seeping into her own mind as she approached. "What's wrong…?"

He didn't respond.

She sat next to him without a sound, looking at his masked face.

There was a long silence.

"I just…" Robin finally spoke, his voice quiet but serious. "…don't know how much more I can take."

Relieved to hear his voice but worried with his words, Raven frowned in concern as she scooted a little closer to him.

"Much more of what—"

"Raven!" Robin's voice suddenly raised, his tone drowned in suffering as he abruptly turned and gripped both Raven's shoulders. "Slade! He—"

He blinked hard, his voice cracking. "He…" His throat moved as he swallowed. "…touched me." He let go quietly now, turning back to the city. "Just like Bruce."

His tussled black hair blew randomly across his forehead with the wind, nothing but the sounds of the city around them now.

"It's killing me slowly." Robin's voice pierced the stillness, his tone depressed, accepting. "From the inside out."

Raven, still trying to let it all sink in, swallowed her shock and several tears as she gently cleared her throat. "I know." She looked at him sincerely, "I can feel it."

Silence.

"And…well…" Her violet hair brushed across her face, her dark eyes gazing outward again. "…I can relate, you know."

At this, Robin looked over.

She chuckled, looking over at him so that their eyes met. "We are more alike than you think, Richard."

Confused, Robin frowned slightly.

"Slade touched me too…if you can call it only that. So has my father, when he was in human form. You know. Back on Azarath." She smiled at him. "I guess…we kinda have another bond, hey?"

Robin stared for another second, before his eyes relaxed and a small smile came over him. "Yeah. We kinda do."

---

-The End-


End file.
